SANTA CRUZ – Less than two weeks before Christmas, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. has shut off power to no fewer that three county residents who removed SmartMeters from their homes.

The move reduced one customer to tears, left a mother of two without electricity and had others fearing they were next. And with PG&E representatives present at Tuesday’s county board meeting for a SmartMeter-related issue, incredulous board members grilled a company executive.

“It’s hard for me to believe that PG&E, given all the public-relations nightmares it’s been involved in lately, is willing to add another one,” said Supervisor Ellen Pirie, leading a contingent of board members who seemed genuinely befuddled by the utility’s actions.

“We’re having a Dickensian moment here,” Supervisor John Leopold said. “I would urge you to say, ‘Let’s get in the spirit of the holidays.'”

Monise Sheehan of Aptos, Peggy Lindsey of Aptos, and Bianca Carn of Live Oak, all said they’ve all lost power after hiring an electrician to remove their SmartMeters, arguing that the wireless devices are detrimental to their health.

Carn said her husband is out of town and plans to stay at a relative’s house. She said her children, ages 8 and 6, were looking forward to putting up their Christmas tree. Lindsey, who is 75, said she did not know what she would do.

All three customers have one thing in common: Without PG&E permission, they hired someone to remove their meters and replaced it with a nonwireless meter. Last week, they returned their meters to a Capitola PG&E payment office.

Since late summer the company has installed thousands of SmartMeters throughout the county. PG&E officials said removing them, even by an electrician, can cause fires, burns or electrical shock, and has so far refused to replace the wireless meters with old, analog meters.

“Unfortunately, tampering with a PG&E meter by anyone who is not a PG&E trained professional creates a real urgent public safety issue,” said Wendy Sarsfield, a PG&E governmental relations officials who caught the board’s ire.

Carn wasn’t buying it.

“Come on. No. They’re replacing analogs all over the place,” she said. “Just grab one from someone else’s home and stick it on mine.”

In other business, the board approved a new contract for home health care workers, settling a long-running dispute. The new deal maintains wages for workers at $11.50 an hour.

The board also tentatively agreed to allow veterans back into the county Veteran’s Hall next month for a brief ceremony. The building is being renovated, and local veterans say they want one last look at the old building.